You're Welcome
by Fantasy3
Summary: Skittery gets lung cancer, and he's stuck in the hospital. But his stay becomes better when he becomes friends with his roommate, nicknamed Mush. He, too, had cancer, and the two of them try and get through it together. Not slashy, I promise


Disclaimer: The normal stuff... I don't own the Newsies characters. Surprise! Disney does! You didn't see that one coming...  
  
Challenge Time!! A fluff story that involves character death. Hmm... never written fluff just for the purpose of fluff, but I'm a sucker for character death stuff. This'll be... erm, interesting.  
  
.................................................................................................................................  
  
Michael 'Skittery' Jameson had always hated the smell of hospitals. Every time he stepped into one, he thought about death, shivering at the thought of it. And now that he was the one the doctors were trying to save, he was just plain scared. A year ago, he had been diagnosed with cancer, and had gotten a surgery. Supposedly, it was all gone. But now, they had found the cancer in his lung, even worse than it had been before. It was spreading quickly, and they doctors wanted him in the hospital so he could be monitored.  
  
"Honey... are you alright?" His mom asked, looking over at him from her plastic hospital waiting room chair.  
  
"What do you think?" He asked angrily.  
  
"Michael, please." She said, a little desperately. "Not right now."  
  
His voice soften when he looked at her, seeing the sadness in her eyes. "Sorry Mom. It's just... this is too much."  
  
"I know honey, I know." She patted his hand, holding back her tears. "But now that you're here, they'll make sure you get better. If you were that bad they would just have let you stay home, right?"  
  
He nodded, but he knew that the doctors all thought he was going to die. They never said it, but he could tell when they looked at him; the sadness in their eyes that an 18 year old boy had lung cancer and would most likely die.  
  
"Michael, why don't you come on back now?" A nurse asked, walking up to them.  
  
Skittery stood up. "Can my mom come with me?"  
  
"Sure she can." She said, smiling. She extended her hand, and he shook it. "I'm Melanie."  
  
Skittery's mom stood up next to him, and he grabbed onto her hand as they walked down the halls to his room.  
  
"Now, I hope you don't mind, but you've got a roommate." Melanie said, opening the door to his room.  
  
When Skittery walked in, he saw another boy about his age leaning against the headboard of his bed. His brown somewhat curly hair was short, and when he heard them walk in, he looked over at them. His chocolate brown eyes lit up and he grinned at all three of them. "Hey!"  
  
"Hi." Skittery said, nodding to him.  
  
"Sean, this is Michael. He's your new roommate." Melanie explained. She put her clipboard in it's place at the end of the empty bed. Then she went to a cabinet between the two beds and took out the hospital gown out. "Here you go, Michael. Why don't you go and put this on? The bathroom's right over there."  
  
Skittery made a face. "Do I have to wear this?"  
  
"It's not that bad." The boy said. "You get used to it after awhile."  
  
Skittery raised his eyebrow as if to say 'Yeah, right', but he went into the bathroom anyway. Before he changed, he looked in the mirror knowing full well that might be the last time he wore normal clothes. He sighed and played with the belt loop on his blue jeans, thinking of everything he'd miss while he was in the hospital. He'd miss the rest of his senior year. True, there were only three months left, but that meant he wouldn't be there for graduation. Unless some miracle happened, but he didn't think that was likely to happen. His cancer was growing in the right lung, and it was only a matter of time before it got into the left one.  
  
He pulled his shirt of slowly, throwing it on the ground once it was off. He bent to pick up his hospital gown and slipped it over his shoulders before he kicked off his shoes and unzipped his jeans, pulling them off. Skittery took a shaky breath before he picked his clothes off the ground and went back into his new room.  
  
The sheets on his bed were pulled back, ready for him.  
  
"Why don't I take your clothes home, Michael?" Mrs. Jameson asked, holding her arms out.  
  
"Yeah, that'd be good. Thanks, Mom." Michael handed over his clothes and got into the bed. His mother smoothed the sheets down once he was comfortable. But he just wanted to go home.  
  
........................  
  
Skittery's mom didn't leave until visiting hours were over, and after a few minutes of silence, his roommate spoke up.  
  
"Do you like being called Michael, or do you have a nickname I should call you?" Sean asked.  
  
"Only my family calls me Michael. My friends call me Skittery."  
  
"Skittery, huh? That's cute." Sean said, smiling.  
  
"Cute?" Skittery asked, turning to look at him. "Great, just what I wanted.  
  
"You can call me Mush. That's what my friends call me."  
  
"Mush?"  
  
"Yeah, Mush. Anyway, what are you in here for?"  
  
"Lung cancer. It's spreading too fast, so the doctors wanted me in here."  
  
"Harsh. I've got colon cancer."  
  
"Is it bad?"  
  
"I guess. I've been here for a few months already, and it hasn't spread too much. I take that as a good sign."  
  
"How many months?"  
  
"Six."  
  
"You've been here for six months?! I would hate being stuck in here for six weeks."  
  
Mush shrugged. "I felt that way the first few months, but it's just made me more determined to fight the cancer and get out of here alive."  
  
Skittery sighed. "I hope I get out of here alive. And soon. I've got three months until I'm supposed to graduate from high school."  
  
"That stinks. I'm supposed to be a junior in high school, but I've missed so much of it, I don't know where I'd be."  
  
"You should've had your friends bring your work to you or something."  
  
Mush smiled a little sheepishly. "I-I don't have any friends."  
  
"You don't?"  
  
"Well, we've moved so many times because of my dad's job, and I haven't really been in one place long enough to make a friend. I wasn't in school here long enough to find a friend, I got sent here two months after I moved here."  
  
"That sucks."  
  
"It does. Though now I've lived in 25 of the 50 states. How about you, though. You've got any friends?"  
  
"Yeah. I've got a few really good friends."  
  
"How many is 'a few'?" Mush asked, grinning.  
  
Skittery laughed. "Alright, so there're only two of them. One's been my neighbor forever, and the other I met at school. I mean, I have more friends, but not like those two."  
  
"There's nothing wrong with only having two friends. Better than none. I would know."  
  
Skittery nodded, feeling bad for him. He wouldn't be able to make it through without his friends, and not having any at all...  
  
"How about this; if we both make it out of here, I'll show you around, introduce you to a few people. And hopefully you won't leave right away."  
  
Mush grinned. "When we get out of here, I'd love that!"  
  
"Optimistic, are you?"  
  
"You betcha. Just my luck, too, getting stuck with a pessimist."  
  
"I'm not always a pessimist."  
  
"Just when you're awake, right?" Mush laughed at his own joke and leaned back against his pillows.  
  
"I'm a senior, Mush. Watch your step." Mush just rolled his eyes, and Skittery had to smile. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.  
  
.........................  
  
Over the next few weeks, Mush and Skittery talked about everything between their radiation treatment and doctor check-ups and visits from relatives and friends. And in that short time, the two of them became close; they understood what the other was going through, unlike their families or Skittery's friends. They knew what it was like to be stuck inside and to go through all that treatment, and it was hard not to get to know each other while they shared a room all day and met each other's families when they came to visit.  
  
"Hey, Mush, throw me that magazine your parents brought you today."  
  
"No way, Skits. I was just about to read it."  
  
"Sure you were." Skittery said sarcastically.  
  
"I was!" He wagged his finger at him, giving a good impression (and Skittery would know) of Mush's mother. "Don't use that tone of voice with me, young man."  
  
"I'm older than you."  
  
"Then, old man."  
  
"Speak for yourself. I'm only 18."  
  
"Shut up, Skits, I'm trying to read."  
  
Skittery laughed and picked up the crossword book his friends had brought for him yesterday, but just when he started to work on one, his family walked into the room.  
  
"Heya, Mike!" Skittery's blonde-haired younger brother, Kyle, bounded into the room.  
  
"Hey, kid, how you doing?"  
  
"Pretty good."  
  
"Hey, Lauren." Skittery smiled at his older sister. Her sophomore year of college had ended the day before, so she had come home. "Bet you're glad school's out for the summer."  
  
Lauren smiled back, her green eyes sparkling. "Yeah, I could use a little break from all the tests."  
  
"I bet." Skittery nodded. "And how many days of seventh grade do you got, Kyle?"  
  
"Only two weeks! And then I'm an eighth grader. It'll finally be my turn to graduate."  
  
Skittery smiled. "I remember eighth grade. It was a great year." He looked up at Lauren. "Where're mom and dad?"

"Dad's at work, he's coming later, and mom's parking the car."

"Great."

"Hey, Sean!" Kyle said, nodding to the other boy.

Sean looked up from his magazine and grinned at him. "Hey, Kyle. How's everything?"

"Good."

"That's good."

"Yeah... Sean, this is my sister, Lauren." Skittery said, introducing them. "Laur, this is Sean."

Lauren smiled at him. "Hey, Sean."

Mush smiled back. "Hey. So you're in college?"

"Yeah."

"You like it?"

"I love it. What grade are you in?"

"I'm a junior in high school."

"Ooo, a senior next year. You'll be graduating the same year as Kyle." She ruffled Kyle's hair, and he squirmed.

"Laurennn." He whined. "Stop, you're ruining my hair."  
  
Lauren laughed. "Sorry, didn't mean to."

Sean grinned and went back to reading his magazine.

"So how are you doing, Michael?" Lauren asked.

"I'm good. Being stuck here isn't as bad as I thought it'd be." Skittery said.

"That's good." Lauren said, but she searched his face to find signs on how bad the cancer was.

Skittery reached out and took her hand, squeezing it. "Don't worry about me, alright? There's nothing to worry about."

But his eyes told her otherwise. It must have gotten even worse and he didn't want Kyle knowing. She squeezed his hand back and let go. Her voice was a little shaky when she talked next, but Kyle didn't notice anything. "What are you working on?"

"A crossword puzzle. My friends brought it in for me the other day."

"That was sweet of them. Gave you something to work on, huh?"

"Yeah, not too much fun, though. Sean wouldn't let me borrow his magazine..."

Sean looked over at them, laughing. "It's my magazine, Skits. Just let me read it, then you can."

"Yeah, yeah. Just hurry up and finish already." Skittery said, and he turned back to see the look on his sister's face. "What?"  
  
"Skits?"  
  
"You've heard that before. Stacey and Tom call me that all the time."

"Yeah, but they're the only ones. None of your other friends do."

Skittery shrugged. "Sean's a good friend of mine now. It's kinda hard to not to be friends."

She smiled at him. "I'm glad you got a good roommate."

"Me too."

..........................

That night, Skittery sat in bed, thinking. His cancer was worse, and the doctor had explained what was happening to his parents and sister while Kyle stayed in the room with him; it had spread into the other lung.

But that wasn't what he was thinking about.

"What's wrong, Skits?"  
  
Skittery shrugged, staring straight ahead. "Nothing, Mush."  
  
"Something's wrong. I can tell."

"It's nothing important. Just go to sleep, Mush."

"Is it about your cancer? You'll be fine. It doesn't matter that it got into the other lung."

"It's not that."

"Then what is it?" Mush asked skeptically.

Skittery sighed and spoke quietly. "I was supposed to graduate today."  
  
"You were? Oh, man, I didn't know... That sucks, I'm real sorry."  
  
"Yeah, I know. I've been waiting for this my whole life, and I missed it because I got cancer. I got cancer and I'm only 18! How unfair is that?!"  
  
Mush swung his legs off his bed and faced him. "Well, you had to have heard people tell you that life just isn't fair."  
  
"That doesn't make it any better, and you know it."

Mush nodded. "I do. But if you've heard that, you've heard that everything happens for a reason."

Skittery snorted. "There's no good reason for either of us to have gotten cancer."  
  
"I don't believe that at all." Mush said.

Skittery turned to look at him. "Oh yeah? Why not?"  
  
"Well, if I didn't get cancer, and you didn't get cancer, we would never have met." Mush sighed. "You're the only friend I've ever had, and you have no idea how happy I am to have met you. I mean, my parents are great... but to have a friend. I never knew how great that was. So, thanks, Skittery. Thanks for being my best friend."

Skittery stared at him, amazed. Then he smiled. "You're welcome. And I have to admit, I'd never have made it this far if it wasn't for you. I'd have gone crazy, I guarantee it."

Mush grinned. "That'll be the biggest success of my life; I stopped someone from going crazy."

"Make sure you tell the grandkids that one."

"If I make it."

"What do you mean, if I make it?"

"If I ever get out of here."

Skittery raised his eyebrow. "This from the optimist?"

"Yeah." Mush sighed. "I've been here so long, I don't know if I'll ever leave."

"You will." Skittery said. "You have to."

"Why do I have to?"

"Because you've got your whole life ahead of you!"

"So do you."  
  
It was Skittery's turn to sigh. "I'm not going to make it out of here, Mush."

"How do you... Geez, stop being so moody, Skits. You'll live, I know you will."

"I won't. The cancer's in both my lungs, they're hooking me up to a breathing machine tomorrow. The doctors don't think I'll make it through this week."

Mush jumped up, shocked. "But- Why didn't you tell me?!"

"The doctor just told me tonight. My family doesn't even know."  
  
"Skits..." Mush swallowed hard. "Please, you gotta fight it. I can't lose you now!"  
  
"I've got no choice, Mush. Man, and I wanted to see the world."

"You still can. You can still fight the cancer!" Mush came up to his bed, frantic.

Skittery smiled slightly at him. "I'll try."

........................

The next day, they did indeed hook him up to a machine to help him breath, and they planned on moving him to a private room, but Skittery talked them out of that. He wanted to stay in his room with Mush. And as the doctor's predicted, breathing came hard to Skittery in the next few days, even with the machine helping him. His family was with him all day, from the time visiting hours began until it ended. He appreciated it, but he was glad of his nights with just Mush for company. They talked as they always had, though Skittery now had to take breaks to catch his breath after every few words.

Three days after the machine was hooked up, one of Skittery's lungs collapsed. There was no question now; he was dying.

His family sat by him, holding back their tears. Mush, too, was sitting beside him.

"I love you guys." Skittery said breathlessly.

"I love you, too, honey." His Mom said, holding his hand tightly. "We all do."

Lauren was standing up smoothing his hair back. She let her tears fall freely. "We're going to miss you, Mikey."

Skittery smiled at that, faintly, but it was still there. His body was weak now that he wasn't getting enough air into him. "I'll still be with you."

Skittery's father was holding his other hand. "We need you, son. Please don't leave us."

Skittery squeezed his dad's hand. "I can't help it. I don't want to go. But I'll be fine, and so will you."

"Mike... "Kyle was sitting at the end of his bed, looking over at him.

"Yeah, kiddo?"

"I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you, too. You make sure and listen to what Mom and Dad say, alright? They know what they're doing, even though you won't think so at the time."  
  
"I will." Kyle promised. He wiped away the tears on his cheeks.

Skittery looked to Mush, who had pulled a chair up at the end of his bed. He was looking down at the ground, feeling like he was intruding.

"Hey, Mush?"

He looked up at him. "Yeah, Skits?"  
  
"You make sure and beat this cancer for me, alright?"  
  
Mush smiled slightly through his tears. "I will."  
  
"Get out and see the rest of those states, huh?" Skittery asked. His breathing was getting very labored now.

"I will, Skits."

"Thanks, Mush. For being my friend. I love you all." And with a last squeeze to his parents hands, he took his last breath.

"You're welcome." Mush whispered, tears falling silently down his cheeks.

.................................................................................................................................

Yup, so there you go. Fluffy, because Mush and Skits become friends! And character death 'cause little Skitsy dies. I love Skits! hugs him And Mush. hugs him I think they'd be cute friends... lol.


End file.
